Blogs and Commentary

What's in Your Heaphones, Team USA?

If you're anything like me (and, if you're hanging around at
laxmagazine.com, I suspect you are), music has been a big part of
your life, including your athletic career.

I remember distinctly goofing around at football practice while
the girls' soccer team's pre-game mix tape of late-90s jock jams
was playing, and one of my fondest memories was when my lacrosse
coach broke the tension in the locker room during a tight game by
going to his old VW rabbit for some 'pump-up music', which wound up
being a cassette tape of Pat Bennetar's 'Hit Me With Your Best
Shot." Classic Bill Condon move, by the way...

But more than anything, it was the tunes in the earphones of the
Walkman and diskman that I remember, sitting in the locker room or
on the team bus, getting myself psyched up for the game that was
about to start.

I could bore you with what I listened to, but since the FIL
World Cup is right around the corner, we thought it might be much
more to your liking to know what the ladies of TeamUSA might have
pouring out of their iPods as they get ready to hit the field in
just under two weeks.

Ally Carey - Midfield

"Careful" by Paramore. The lyrics keep me
going when I workout. The chorus reminds me to push hard when
training and leave it all on the field when I get ready for a game.
I also like Paramore's "Born for This" - the
beat of the song and the chorus help me push myself in
workouts.

Lindsay Munday - Attack

"Kobe Bryant" by Lil Wayne-- Love
him or hate him, Kobe is a great basketball player and the lyrics
go through all of his major accomplishments- it's pretty inspiring.
The youtube below also has some video to go along with it, its
sweet! (a few of us also listened to it during the 09 World Cup so
it has some good memories associated with
it).

"On Top of the World" by Imagine
Dragons - I definitely need a mix of intense and also some
happy songs with very calm beats. This song by Imagine Dragons has
been on my recent playlists and it just makes me smile. It reminds
me that we are so lucky to be playing this game we love and to
enjoy it and have fun!

Devon Wills - Goalie

"Intro" by The XX and "In the Zone" by
Kid Cudi

Kelly Berger -
Midfield

Right now I've got these two on repeat - but
I'm someone who listens to what they love at the moment over and
over again... so it changes often. Ask me in two weeks and it may
be different... Just how I roll.

"Beautiful" by Mariah Carey and Miguel.
No one can deny its not a great beat, one to just sway back and
forth too with the head phones on and you may or may not see me
thinking I am Mariah Carey and able to sing like her... and I am
totally not!

Alesso & Dirty South "City of Dreams"
- I like songs that make you want to dance to get me
ready for whatever I have in front of me and this song comes on and
I automatically start dancing.

Amber Falcone -
Defense

"Ridin' Solo" - Jason Derulo
- I love this song - any time I am finishing up a hard workout,
Iput this on and it gets me through!

"I Wanna Dance With Somebody" -
Whitney Houston - Just puts me in a really fantastic mood
and reminds me to be loose. (Editor's note: This was also
listed among the U-19 playlist.... Who
knew!?!)

Sarah Bullard -
Midfield

"The Sky is the Limit" by Lil' Wayne and
"Defying Gravity" by the Glee
Cast

Gina Oliver -
Defense

"Kobe Bryant" - Little Wayne
- I got this one from Lindsay Munday. She let
me listen to it last world cup before one of the games, and I have
been listening to it ever since!

"Kanye West" - Amazing
- Amazing just gets me fired up about how incredible it
is to play with such a great team. Everyone is so good,
and that's excitement in itself!

Kristin Igoe -
Midfield

"Dream On" - Aerosmith. This song reminds
me that I have big dreams, and to reach those dream I have to push
myself during workouts and in games.

"Fast Cars and Freedom"- Rascal Flatts.
I'm a big country fan, and this is one of my favorite country
songs!

Holly McGarvie-Reilly - Defense

"I Got a Feeling" WOOO HOOOO.... (Black Eyed
Peas) - Who doesn't love this song? As
soon as I hear it, my head starts bobbing. Gets me in the
mood to have some lax fun.

"When You're Gone" (Avril Lavigne) - This is
completely random, but I saw a group of students I taught once
perform this song, and from then it was just really powerful!

Katie Schwarzmann - Midfield

Major Lazer- "Keep it goin' louder"
- I listened to it before every game in college as my
pre-game song. It was my one of a few songs I needed to listen to
before I left the house or hotel for a game. Me and my teammate
Iliana Sanza kept it as a tradition throughout our 4 years.

Archie Eversole - "We Ready"
- This was always a locker room song to get me and my
team pumped up. This was the last song we played as everyone left
the locker room to take the field for warm ups. It has somewhat
become a tradition for the Maryland lacrosse team- and I think I
will continue that before every game I play!

Danielle Etrasco - Attack

It's difficult to choose just two songs, because my
favorites change each year, but at the moment my two go-to's are:
"Alive" - Krewella and "Burn" - Meek
Mill and Big Sean.

Krewella is a song I'll listen to when I am on the bus or
relaxing, the beat with little lyrics helps me get in the zone and
focused. Burn is a completely different genre, a song I know every
word to and most definitely something I'll listen to in the locker
room right before I walk out.

Caitlyn McFadden - Midfield

"Play Hard" by David Guetta ft. Neyo and Akon
and "We takin' Over" by DJ Khaled

Jenn Russell - Defense

On the bus I like to listen to slow stuff. I usually
stick with John Mayer and Jack
Johnson. Once we get off the bus I start to play
more pump up stuff. I go through phases with songs and so for
training camp I am guessing it will be some Drake,
"Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore, and probably
Mariah Carey. (Embarassing, I
know!)

So what gets you pumped up? You have any songs in common
with Team USA, or you go a different way? Let us know in the
comments.